European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - April 15, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Apprehension in Alsace German unification worries French by Alan Riding new York times m any villages along the French Bank of the Rhine have German names the architecture is pure Hansel and Gretel and to visitors at least the local language sounds Little different from that spoken in Berlin. Today though the population is As proudly French As it is alsatian. But from the time of Charlemagne 1,200 years ago whenever Central Europe has stirred Alsace and neighbouring Lorraine have had reason to worry. In wars they were invariably caught in the crossfire. And in peace negotiations they were always being annexed or bargained away. Now with sudden change sweeping Germany toward unification nerves Are once again on Edge in Alsace. Not that the Region fears a new hostile takeover by a neighbor that last claimed this territory in world War ii. It is simply that As in the past any convulsion in Germany is bound to shake Alsace and Lorraine. Older people not least men pressed into the German army in 1940, Are openly apprehensive about a resurgence of German Power. Quot i fear that in 20 or 30 years another crazy Hitler will appear and March again Quot said Charles Spangenberge 67, a Retiree who fought in German uniform and then after capture was allowed to join the Allied forces. Yet More typically in Seitz a medieval Village of just 2,700 inhabitants economic uncertainty is of greater concern. Seitz is situated barely one mile from the Rhine which Marks much of the French German Border and Many of its adults work in German owned factories on both sides of the River while its shops and restaurants Prosper thanks to German customers. This is no less True for dozens of other Border towns and villages stretching northward from Strasbourg the alsatian capital. In the 14 communes that comprise the Canton of Seltz for instance 42 percent of the 19,500-member labor Force works in Germany. And As a result unemployment in the area stands at under 2 percent compared to a National average of 9 percent. Quot if East germans begin taking the jobs of frenchmen if the Deutsche Mark weakens if investment starts going to East Germany All this could Hurt us Quot said Hugo Kraemer a schoolteacher and Deputy mayor of Seltz. Quot there is no Way we could make up for  the suggestion that Northern Alsace has quietly become a German economic satellite disturbed the robust 49-year-old As he sat at his desk in the town Hall. A a we re preparing for the integration of Europe Quot he said. Quot we re a european Region that happens to be in two  nonetheless the area s economic dependence on Germany has spawned conflicting attitudes toward germans. Quot we re ambiguous about them Quot said Laurent Timmel 29, who is involved in development projects in Seltz. Quot we want their Money but we done to want them to come Over and buy up everything. We want to be French but we secretly fear they Are Superior to  Alsace a relationship with Germany could hardly be simple. Having Long been ruled by a succession of German princes Alsace and part of Lorraine were acquired by France under the treaty of Westphalia in 1648. Yet while the Region frequently asserted its Independence from Paris after the 1789 revolution it was not Happy to be absorbed anew by Germany in 1870. The memory of what followed a the Region was recovered by France after world War i seized again by German troops in 1940 and liberated in 1945 a is still very much alive Here today. Many Middle aged alsatian for example have or remember parents who were born and educated As germans and never Learned French. Quot my Mother who is 89 years old was a subject of the Kaiser Quot recalled Hubert Deiss who was forced to join the German army at the age of 14 and now owns a pharmacy in Seltz. Quot she even saw the Kaiser in 1907. She tells me we have to watch the germans  she does so in alsatian of course. She does no to speak much  during world War ii when Alsace was annexed rather than simply occupied like the rest of France the French language was again banned Here. Kraemer who was born in 1941, said his parents were forced to Register him As Hugo a rather than Hugues a because French names were forbidden. Some people were even forced to Germanizue their names Rene becoming Renatus for example. But after the War things were not much easier because the French authorities for Many years banned not Only German but also alsatian which is a German Stone Crucifix in the Village of Kientz Heim France stands next to a tank that serves As a memorial to wars waged Between France and Germany Over control of Alsace. The 12s-by-25-mite strip of land on the West Bank of the Rhine has changed hands five times in 120 years. Dialect and was viewed As a threat to Alsace s French identity. Today though German is taught from primary school and alsatian is the Lingua Franca throughout the Region. More significantly the area around Seltz some 40 Miles North of Strasbourg is isolated Between a Forest and the Rhine and it attracted Little French investment. It was therefore Only after the German Economy began to Boom in the 1960s that affluence began to spill Over into Alsace. Quot about half our customers Are germans Quot said Rene Werlen whose family owns the Auberge de la Foret restaurant in Seltz. Quot for the same Quality food they d have to pay twice As much in Germany. But this in t All Good. They also come Over and buy up Homes Here and that pushes up prices for  economic ties Are not matched by social links. For example the mayors of seven of Seitz s communes work in Germany yet none of the 14 communities is Quot twinned Quot to a German Village. Quot Many germans now have a european Point of View Quot said Suzanne Knobloch the 59-year-old owner of a Gas station in Seltz. Quot but some germans Are still germans. They Are always proclaiming in a loud voice that they re the  but other local residents Are clearly in Awe of their neighbors across the River. Quot it s not that they work harder than us Quot Guy Callegher the mayor of Kess Eldorf said. Quot it s just that they re More organized and determined. Quot Kraemer put it differently. Quot give a German a Mercedes a shirt and a tie and hell outsell  As the european Community prepares to eliminate All Borders after 1992, the asymmetry of economic Power in this Region will become More apparent. Quot in a sense we re like a developing country providing raw materials labor and entertainment to Germany Quot Timmel said of Alsace. Quot they buy our Wood turn it into furniture and sell it Back to  but if alsatian have Learned to live with this recent political developments in Germany have also served to remind them of their geographical vulnerability. And lest anyone should forget the crumbling Concrete bunkers of the Maginot line still stand nearby As mute testimony to the last time Alsace changed hands. Sunday april 15, 1990 the stars and stripes a a a Page 13